Executive overstepping the mark - DA

Cape Town - Government is impeding the constitutional
imperative of a separation of powers by threatening to intervene in
parliamentary matters, the DA said on Tuesday.

Earlier, the justice, crime prevention, and security
(JCPS) cluster of ministries said it was responsible for securing the
parliamentary precinct.

This followed disruption of proceedings in the National
Assembly by EFF MPs on Thursday.

DA Chief Whip John Steenhuisen said the executive was
overstepping the mark.

"At this morning’s briefing, the chairperson of the
cluster, [Defence Minister] Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, said the fracas in the
House last week constituted a threat to national security, and that the
executive 'cannot stand idle as our democracy is undermined'," Steenhuisen
said.

"This is a veiled threat, which completely ignores
Parliament’s responsibility to uphold its own rules and therefore handle this
matter."

The opposition party would write to the parliamentary
oversight authority [POA] for an urgent meeting.

"The POA must send a very clear message to members
of the executive that this infringement of its powers and independence as a
separate arm of the state will not be accepted," said Steenhuisen.

"It is high time that Parliament tells the executive
to back off and take its oversight role seriously."

In the JCPS briefing, Mapisa-Nqakula and Police Minister
Nathi Nhleko denied there was an attempt to breach the separation of powers,
insisting police were responsible for security at Parliament.

According to their interpretation, the executive
commanded the police and therefore had every right to intervene.

Mapisa-Nqakula said the law provided for police officers
to help eject errant MPs from Parliament as soon as the Speaker or chair of the
House ordered it.

"The Speaker... decided that the sergeant-at-arms
should come in and escort the members out of the House, and when there was
resistance to that, immediately all of us should have known that by the Speaker
saying 'sergeant-at-arms remove'... what it means is that your protection
security services can come in and assist with the escorting of people
out."

Police’s failure

Mapisa-Nqakula blamed the police's failure to act on
confusion about the rules.

She cited both section 59 of the Constitution, which
regulates, among others, the removal of people from the National Assembly, and
section 11 of the legislation governing parliamentary powers.

"[The] Powers, Privileges, and Immunities of
Parliament and Provincial Legislatures Act of 2004, section 11, provides for: If
there is a person who creates or takes part in any disturbance in the precinct
while Parliament, or the House or a committee is meeting, may be arrested and
removed from the precinct on the order of the Speaker, or the chairperson, or a
person designated by the Speaker or chairperson, by a staff member or a member
of the security service."

Thursday's chaos erupted after EFF leader Julius Malema
and his fellow MPs expressed unhappiness about how President Jacob Zuma had
answered questions on when he was going to repay part of the R246m spent on
security upgrades to his private Nkandla residence in KwaZulu-Natal.

Public Protector Thuli Madonsela had recommended in her
report on Nkandla, titled "Secure in Comfort", that Zuma repay that
part of the money not spent on security measures, like the swimming pool and
cattle kraal.

Zuma has been accused of delaying responding in
Parliament to Madonsela's report after he said he would leave it to Nhleko to
determine if he should repay any of the money.

... well hopefully the DA will learn a little from Julius that there is no place for politeness in parliament and that politeness and politics does not fall into the same category
If the DA is the official opposition party then they better step up to the plate

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Mike Heyns
2014-08-26 06:52:30 PM

My sincere apologies to the DA! Many thanks for at least bringing it to attention.
However, have you not learned that this government gives two hoods about the Constitution or any laws of this country? They do as they please and if they don't feel like answering you, then so be it!
Just keep on paying your taxes and sjjjjtt! Who cares about the tax payer, the poor, the illiterate, or for that matter the allegations?
Just pay your taxes and keep quite!!

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Bonga Mbele
2014-08-26 07:31:18 PM

I sincerely hope you are just kidding. We should never sit and say nothing when things go wrong in our beloved country. I do believe the DA has a point here and a very good one. I strongly believe in the separation of powers between the three arms of the state. If you are serious here I would be greatly disappointed. Take a look at how we stopped the secrecy bill, forced government to provide ARVs, and there are many other examples

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Mike Heyns
2014-08-27 09:15:35 AM

@Bonga:
Unfortunately, I'm dead serious my friend!
I acknowledge that the DA is trying but there are just to many holes in the bucket!
Presidents, Ministers, Generals, Directors, MEC's, NEC's, Senior Officials caught daily with both their hands in the cookie jar (intentionally) and that's where it ends!
The secrecy bill was implemented during May 1994. The Arms Deal, Spytapes, Nkandla, Zumaville, Guptagate, Eskom, SAA, etc. etc. Even the E-Tolls and now they want a court order to "prevent the publication of e-toll tariffs in Cape Town"? All done in secret.....
The reason why Mbeki was "fired" (for the world sake) was his denial of AIDS and HIV stance. As number 1 ranked in the world for AIDS, what better way of introducing ARV to endorse the decision?
You would think that the AG audits of municipalities and government departments would at least make a dent at unnecessary spending? Appears to me that just the opposite was achieved!
As long as we pay? All is ok!!

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Tebogo Andries Sithole
2014-08-26 06:55:34 PM

what we dd in gauteng legislature will be like nothing compared to what we will do to the national assembly,ba kobe fela wena koko Baleka

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Motho Fela
2014-08-26 07:28:34 PM

Don't destroy please.

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Tersia Louw
2014-08-26 07:48:48 PM

Another threat? Anyone heard of civilisation? No?

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Xavier7034
2014-08-26 08:54:18 PM

Bonga tells us that Baleka grew up with him in a Shebeen
.

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graphanex2008
2014-08-26 07:02:16 PM

Anc attempting to silence opposing views by using flimsy justifications

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AndyOG
2014-08-26 07:13:30 PM

Babbling morons.

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Aunt Agatha
2014-08-26 08:12:19 PM

caterwauling cowards

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Chris May
2014-08-26 07:14:52 PM

Does anyone on this forum want a police state?

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Tersia Louw
2014-08-26 07:49:32 PM

I hope not. Been there, done that, didn't like it.

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Sam Scapes
2014-08-26 10:42:06 PM

America is a police state, and look at what happened there recently. We haven't gone through the peaceful transition from apartheid to democracy to stand by and loose it all now.

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Johann Eloff
2014-08-26 07:19:24 PM

Who cares it is still a circus!!

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Motho Fela
2014-08-26 07:32:34 PM

We are still better we don't have the Rebels, but the people who stand up for this government, We don't have a choice we have to put up with all this Rubbishes because 62% clueless people in this country voted for this government.

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Bonga Mbele
2014-08-26 07:36:14 PM

I do

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Aunt Agatha
2014-08-26 08:11:49 PM

Yeah, but, unlike other circuses, these clowns make me want to cry, not laugh

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Alan Robertson
2014-08-26 07:33:03 PM

I trust the police will obey God rather than man...

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Johan Kieser
2014-08-26 07:37:48 PM

Oh my word - are these really human beings? I get the impression they were born dumb and did not learn anything ever since - the whole unhappy bunch. Then they make laws which they themselves have no intention to keep, neither have the infrastructure to uphold as the South African Police Service is as useless as a two cents postal stamp. In the courts we have postponement after postponement - oh how hard do they work? but they get the pay!!! Forensics are in a mess, staff attendance in a mess, what is not in a mess? 5 burglaries at he Hawks offices? Are you kidding me? If they cannot do the simplest of things, what can they do? It is disgusting, but you know? these low life no-goods love this.